Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 404: To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources if he will restate his policy on the future of An Post and the postal services; if lessons have been learned from the postal sector in Europe; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37569/08]

Eamon Ryan (Dublin South, Green Party)
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It is Government policy that An Post remains a strong and viable company, in a position to compete in a liberalised market, provide a high quality, nationwide postal service and maintain a nationwide, customer-focussed network of post offices. The Government's policy with regard to the future development of the postal service is to ensure Irish customers, both business and residential, enjoy competitively priced, high quality postal services on a par with the highest quality standards in key comparator economies elsewhere in the EU. Electronic communications services, while providing threats to the postal service in the form of electronic substitution, will also provide opportunities in the form of e-fulfilment.

It is the responsibility of the board and management of the company to make strategic decisions regarding its future and how it will prepare itself for future competition, particularly in advance of the full liberalisation of the postal sector, set to happen in 2011. With respect to the liberalisation of the Irish postal sector my Department recently conducted a public consultation process on the key issues arising from the recently published EU Directive which sets out the terms for the full liberalisation of the postal sector, EU-wide. Along with the views submitted by stakeholders and interested parties in response to the consultation questions, the experiences of other liberalised postal markets will be taken into account when considering the issues of importance to Ireland in transposing the Directive into Irish law.